


Poolside

by scullyphile



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Clothes, F/M, Motel, Pool, xfwritingchallenge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-13
Updated: 2015-10-13
Packaged: 2018-04-26 06:18:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4993492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scullyphile/pseuds/scullyphile
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mulder and Scully meet up in the motel pool.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Poolside

As Scully drove the Texas highway, her mind kept going back to the contents of her bag, now sitting in the trunk of the rental car next to Mulder’s. Inside it were some variations of the  clothes she usually took with her on a case to another state and something new she had purchased, something that made her both nervous and excited. Lately she felt mostly nervous, almost foolish. 

The case with the fast moving teenagers, which had them feeling old at first, had ultimately made them feel like teenagers. Up until recently, they had been moving so slowly she might swear they were standing still. If someone had asked her then if she thought she would be here in this moment, she would have laughed. But somehow, they had finally broken the spell. Their relationship was moving, and it was a blur.

Three times. Three times so far they had had sex, but now there was a new case. She had promised herself that in the field she would pretend nothing had changed, but off the clock was another issue all together. 

She kept thinking about it. Tucked in that bag was a new bathing suit. Up until this point she had a practical blue one-piece that she packed, just in case there was a pool at the motel and she felt like swimming some laps. She had started packing it when she noticed that on occasion Mulder would choose one motel over another just because of the pool. He did love to swim, and often used the pool to think or relieve the stress of a hard case. 

She peeked out the heavy curtains more than once to catch a glimpse of him. Usually she waited until he was done swimming to go out and get in a few laps. Occasionally, she would show up poolside, fully dressed, and sit on a chair while he swam. When he came up for air she might talk to him about the case, ask him how he was.

This suit, however, was something of an impulse purchase. She had decided she needed a new one. The elastic was not the best on her old one, she rationalized. It had nothing to do with her new relationship with her partner.

“Here’s one,” Mulder’s voice came at her from the side, sounding almost liquid. He pointed to a neon sign. “Sleepy Ranch Motel.  Vacancy. Cable TV. Pool.” 

Pool. Scully turned into the lot and parked the car. She waited in the driver’s seat while he procured their rooms. She couldn’t say what she had been thinking about when he walked up, keys jingling next to her head through the open car window.

“Here’s yours. Adjacent rooms, nice view of the pool. The guy said the pool closes at 10:00. It’s 9:30 now. When I asked him what closed meant, he said the lights go off, and he comes to chase everyone out. I slipped him a twenty not to chase me out.” He was beaming with mischief. 

“It cost you twenty dollars to get a guy _not_ to do his job?” she countered.

“A guy like that doesn’t get paid much, Scully. Somebody has to throw him a bone once in awhile. Need me to carry you bag to your room?” He knew that would activate her superwoman mode and close the conversation.

“I’ve got it, thank you,” she said, yanking the bag out of the trunk and heading for her room. 

The inside of the room was stuffy. The air conditioner had been left off. Scully threw her bag onto the bed and went straight over to fiddle with the knobs until cold air started coming out. When she was satisfied that it was set cool enough, she went to the bathroom and changed into her new suit. 

There was indeed a very nice view of the pool, but Mulder wasn’t in it yet. The pool was lit with lights under the water, which gave it an inviting yellow-orange glow, as well as several lights that resembled streetlights which were stationed around the edge of the pool. There was a scattering of cheap plastic chairs at its edge. 

She startled a little when she heard Mulder’s door slam. He walked out with a cheap motel towel in hand in a square leg Speedo, gray with two red stripes down the side. She did not think she had seen that one before. He walked the diving board and dove gracefully into the pool.

She tossed on the large black t-shirt she had “accidentally” borrowed from Mulder, grabbed a towel, and was out the door. Mulder was floating on his back in the middle of the pool. When the gate clanged behind her, he looked in her direction. 

“Joining me for a swim?”

“If you don’t mind.”

“I definitely do not mind, Scully. C'mon in. The water’s fine.”

Her hands played nervously with the bottom of the t-shirt for just a moment. She decided it was best to do it without thinking, and pulled the shirt over her head in one quick movement. When it dropped to the concrete she stood in a black bikini with white polka dots. The top was a halter style with an underwire. The look on his face was shock and admiration together, and she knew that it wasn’t just the mirror in the fitting room that made her look amazing.

She decided that rather than dive in, she would walk slowly into the pool via the concrete stairs at the shallow end. Just as she had hoped, he could not take his eyes off of her. 

Mulder met her at the spot where the shallow end started sloping into the deep end. He stood on the slope so that when she reached it, they were the same height. Their eyes were at the same level. When their eyes met, they both smiled somewhat shyly.

“You, uh. You look great."  

"Not too bad yourself, agent,” she returned the compliment, poking his shoulder with her finger on the word “agent.”

As they leaned in for a long kiss, his hand reached up under her bikini top and his thumb brushed her nipple, which was hard from the cold water. She made a small sound in her throat and pressed her lips to his even harder. 

All the lights went out.


End file.
